I am Cathy Earle from Eorth and I get asked every day by people trying to simply live more sustainably, "Where do I start?" It's often easiest to start in your bathroom or kitchen. Start with changes you are comfortable with and most importantly, which give you personal visibility. When you can see the things you have changed, you are literally rewarding yourself each time you use an item or even look at it. This is why the bathroom is a really good place to start and here are my top 8 change out tips.
Bamboo Cotton Buds can be added to your compost and if for some reason they do make out into the environment, they will break down naturally and not pollute the ocean or land.
This is one of the easiest swaps you can make. Bamboo toothbrushes can either be added to your home compost (they may take a while to break down) or they can be used as a marker in the garden — where they will naturally degrade. Just be sure to remove the bristles beforehand.
Bar Shampoo does take a little while to get used to, but basically you create a lather in your hands, apply it to your hair and massage and rinse as usual. If you find your hair needs conditioner after shampooing then also apply a conditioner bar. There’s no waste when it comes to shampoo bars — the cardboard packaging can be recycled.
Toothpaste tablets may sound a little odd but they are a great zero waste option for your bathroom and also perfect for travel. Simply take one tablet, chew the tablet and as it starts to turn to a foam in your mouth, brush as usual. No mess, no tube, no waste.
Did you know that almost all dental floss on the market is not only made from plastic but is also packaged in plastic? And all that plastic is single use, and non-recyclable. But ... there is a better way. Plastic Free Dental Floss comes in a glass canister which is refillable. Bonus, the floss is biodegradable and safe to add to your compost.
Liquid roll-on deodorant, stick deodorant or deodorant in a spray can is so common and convenient that we often don’t think there is another way. The good news is … you can get stick deodorant in a push-up cardboard tube. Push up from the bottom and apply. So simple, and the best part is — providing the cardboard tube does not have a thin plastic outer layer/sticker you can either place it in your recycle bin or add it straight into your compost. Zero plastic, zero waste!
Getting down to the final easy swaps on our list is one for the ladies (or guys) with long hair. Hair ties aren’t the typical item you would associate with being made from plastic. But it’s true that’s exactly what they are made from. By switching to a plastic free hair band you never have to worry about losing the odd hairband (of course you never want to), but if you do ... you can rest easy knowing that it’s not going to break down into microplastic on the side of the road.
The final swap on our list should probably be at the top of the list — these band aid replacements really are that good! Next time you reach for a band aid think about where it will end up (likely the waste bin in your home), and then what happens to it? It’s headed off to the landfill. Patch Band Aids will stop plastic heading off to landfill — the entire package is compostable. Though you may want to recycle the cardboard tube!
These may be our Top 8 Swaps to achieve an eco-friendly bathroom but there’s always more you can do to go green in the bathroom.